My Journey

[McCarthy]

Jerry,

Brought a legit tear to my eye reading about Montana...


I have a "Montana" as well, he's a Golden. Been with me for 9 years so far, and healthy as a horse. (*KNOCK ON WOOD*). I know exactly how you feel. Words won't be able to describe how devastating it'll be when he's gone... Hoping for as many more good years as possible!

 

[YukonMontanaTannerTrapper]

Mccaf.....thanks for posting that information but I'm thinking that Puerto Penasco might be just a little too Gringo for me from what I've heard from others on the road. And for now anyhow I'm passing on anything more than the border towns.....

ROKTAXI.....it's funny but I'm still not sure what to think about this guy. When I sent the mechanic that picture, his reply was “loose lug nuts, how did that happen ?”.....

furbucket.....actually he told me that he did use an air impact wrench. Then a day later he said his compressor was no good so that was the issue. Then he sent me a picture of his new compressor (which I immediately thought I bought with all the extras he got me for). Your comment about just being happy to be in a Jeep brought back memories of this day.....



Brian.....thanks for posting and yea, there's no substitute for the special ones although I must admit that Tanner is pretty cool. The Renegade will haunt me until it finally sells. There's been a bit of interest in it but nothing to get excited about yet.....

McCarthy.....it's really sucks to loose them.....

After 4 nights at the Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument campgrounds, I found myself wanting to stay much longer. It's amazing how much easier life can become with just a few of the amenities of a campground. And probably the one I enjoy the best is the access to water, and more specifically to a shower. I often will post about how nice it was to grab a shower, or maybe even the qualities of said shower. I was reading a travel blog the other night (clunkmonkey.com.....he's a great writer and a must read) and he was commenting on this very subject, which I will quote from his blog.....”The simple things that we used to take for granted....like a hot shower, or an endless supply of water are now luxuries for us and we're psyched when we get them”. So, yea, I had 5 showers recently and each one was ice cold.....this warning sign on the shower must be a summer thing.....



Anyhow, we finally packed it in and drove east for Tucson, Arizona.....



We had depleted our food supply and had not planned ahead too well. So we spent a few nights on the east side of town.....great views of the nearby mountains which were covered with a light dusting of snowfall one night.....



I've been checking out downtown Tucson.....it's got a “funky” vibe to it which I find quite interesting.....





Three nights here is not quite enough so I'm not sure when I'll move on.....



Yukon is pleased to have our Jeep back.....

 

[chet6.7]

”The simple things that we used to take for granted....like a hot shower, or an endless supply of water are now luxuries for us and we’re psyched when we get them”
The psychological value of a shower(hot shower in cold weather) is not to be ignored.I like Andrew St Pierre White's set up.

 

[YukonMontanaTannerTrapper]

As I walked the streets of downtown Tucson I noticed that the police were shutting down one of the main streets, 4th Avenue to be a bit more precise. I'm thinking and hoping that that it's the sign of a street festival.....and it was. So the following afternoon we were back there to check things out. With such a large rig I'm usually forced to park in neighborhoods and walk into town, which really isn't a bad thing. We passed through this pretty neat bridge to access the city center and the ongoing festival.....



The festival was great.....so many people and so many vendors to talk to.....



By far my favorite vendor were these guys.....



Quesadillas were had for lunch at this little Latino booth. Some people I speak with swear that you can't get good Latino food north of the border but I've never fallen into that thinking. For me it's all about the cook.....not at all about the location.....so I was quite content with my lunch.....





This would be my last day & night in Tucson. I loved it here.....



On the way out of Tucson we made a stop at the San Xavier del Bac Mission.....





It's a Spanish Catholic mission just south of Tucson which was originally founded The building in the photograph was constructed in 1797. It truly is an amazing place !


And then we drove south, once again headed for the Mexican border.....

 

[YukonMontanaTannerTrapper]

Less than fifty miles south of Tucson we pulled off Interstate 8 for a quick stop at small town called Tubac.....and what a stroke of luck that was. Tubac, which was established in 1752, has been remade into an artist colony, with over 100 shops and galleries. For sure I enjoyed the artwork, but what really fascinated me here were the old buildings. And here’s a sampling of Tubac’s historic buildings.....









It seems like I’ve been including the sun light in my pictures quite a bit lately. Probably cause it’s always sunny down here in southern Arizona. The sun light reflects off this piece of art.....



Always enjoy seeing a cool car.....



Since I live in a truck camper these days, I’m not really a buyer of artwork, so I ventured outside of downtown Tubac and stumbled onto the Santa Cruz River, just a short distance from the east side of town. I knew that the dogs would love Tubac as much I did once they hit the river.....so now it was time for some swimming.....





It really was amazing to see this massive forest in the desert. I was not prepared for that but what a treat it was. Honestly I’m beginning to tire of the desert life.....



As the evening was approaching and we had yet to find a spot for the night, I inquired with the owner of the local grocery store and he allowed us to spend the night in a gravel lot behind his store right on the edge of town.....and another day on the road was had.....

 

[Ashton]

Where you think you'll end up once this desert adventure is over? Might you spend some time in the fair weather forests of the Gila Wilderness and Gila National Forest? Some wonderful and remote spots in that part of the country. Weather is pretty nice right now and the area has flowing water most of the year.

 

[josemarcos]

I'm impressed. I enjoyed browsing your photos and reading some of the posts in this thread.

 

[YukonMontanaTannerTrapper]

josemarcos.....thank you and I am pleased that you've enjoyed reading some of the posts.....

Ashton.....I'm not sure exactly where I'm headed next. Weather is always an important factor in any decision that I make regarding that. I do have a Plan A, a Plan B, and then a GRAND Plan, but who knows if they'll work out. And I was actually in the beginnings of Plan A when I again found myself dealing with mechanical issues. Read on for the explanation.....

After a brief stay in Tubac, we continued south on Interstate 8 to Nogales, Arizona. Now the idea was to hang out here, maybe for a week, maybe less, and explore both of the border towns known as Nogales.....one in Arizona and one in Mexico. But the Jeep's transmission was quickly deteriorating and I had to make a decision.....return to Yuma and have the “Baja” mechanic repair it (it was fully guaranteed) or find a new mechanic. I wasn't much impressed with Nogales, Arizona, so.....



After spending my afternoon trying to rescue a starving dog along the border wall, I made the decision to return to Yuma (over 300 miles of back tracking) to have the same guy repair the Jeep. So another stop at Little Italy for another pizza (no pictures this time !) and then on to Yuma. I decided at that point to leave the Jeep and head back to the Holtville Hot Springs (no pictures this time !) and into the desert.....



It's fairly quite here out in the desert, an occasional RV passes by or maybe an airplane disturbes the desert silence.....



It's giving me time to think, to read, to walk, and hang out with the dogs. Within walking distance of our campsite(s) is a huge canal, so.....





I love the desert.....it's time to move on.....

 

[YukonMontanaTannerTrapper]

While at the hot springs I reached out to the people that adopted Mex last winter hoping to visit with them and to see Mex again, but they never responded back (Mex was a puppy that I rescued last winter along the border wall).....



Getting a little bored with the desert life, I headed down to Calexico for a night with plans to revisit Mexicali in the morning. A toothache changed my plans and I was on the road for Los Algodones, Mexico (Molar City). A quick stop at the hot springs on the way.....so early I was the only one there.....



Then back on Interstate 8 headed east.....what an amazing sunrise that morning.....



And it just got better.....



I was at the dentist's door at 8:00 a.m. Saturday morning. Shortly thereafter I was attended to, and an hour later out the door, and wasn't charged a penny. Once again I find the hospitality of the Mexican people to be outstanding. All my pain is gone now. Next was wandering the streets of Los Algodones.....







Lunch at a street vendor's booth at the city park.....



Then a bit more wandering.....



Damn I love Mexico.....even most of the border towns.....

 

[Pacific Northwest yetti]

Jerry,

The plane in the pics is one of the V22 tilt rotor ospreys, Don't see many of them at least not in the PNW. The marine Corps started using them in 2012. Its a pretty cool design.

http://www.boeing.com/defense/v-22-osprey/

I have also wondered about Mex. I sure enjoyed my drive through Baja a few years back, and will be sure to return.

Happy Trails and Safe Travels

 

[YukonMontanaTannerTrapper]

PNWY.....it sucks that they didn’t respond on Mex. I’m so curious about him and honestly it was my only reason for returning to El Centro. Anyhow here’s another aircraft for you.....tons of cool aircraft flying out of the Marine Corps base in Yuma. As I left town yesterday there were hundreds of people lined up along the road that fronts the base.....I’m guessing something unusual was planned.....



Not much has been happening with my “on the road” life as I’ve been waiting on the Jeep repairs. I found a new place to overnight in the city without being harassed.....funny thing is that it was a block from the court house and all of the city services. Go figure.....I had nice views of the bridge over the Colorado River.....



Historic Yuma.....



While waiting we went to the canal daily for a long walk and the dogs swim of course. Poor old Yukon.....she’s changing so quickly these days. Almost ten years of life is taking a toll on her. But the water is her fountain of youth.....



My iPhone pretty much died this week so I’ve been bumming internet off of local establishments. Sitting out front of a Barnes and Noble one morning doing my thing when this guy sits down next to me and lights up a cigarette. I say hey that smoke really bothers me.....his reply is that he’ll only have one. I say I’ve had cancer so I’m really sensitive.....he grunts.....I say I’m going to take your picture and publicly shame you.....he grunts. So now I’m publicly shaming him.....





The Jeep repairs were finally completed yesterday so we hit the interstate and made it to Gila Bend once again. It always feels good to move on.....finally.....

 

[ghostdancer]

Looks like his days are numbered anyway. The ultimate shaming.

 

[Gethigh]

Thanks for sharing... I learned few things that will help me on my trip

 

[YukonMontanaTannerTrapper]

Ghostdancer.....sadly I agree with you completely.....tobacco just sucks.....

gethigh.....good to hear.....thanks.....

Continuing to retrace our previous route, we pulled into Tucson the following afternoon. I had a few things that I needed (and still need) to get done here. First on the to do list was to drop off a big, fat check to my investment company that I picked up on my way out of Yuma. And the reason I had this big, fat check was that my big, fat Renegade motor home had sold. Yep.....what a load of stress relief that was.....

Next on the agenda was to purchase a new phone since the iPhone 7 finally died. I went with the Galaxy S9+ due to it's superior camera with dual lenses and its ability to zoom. I really enjoy posting here and hope to increase the quality of my photos. It's going to take some time to make the switch I think. Expedition Portal does not seem to like this phone one bit.

Anyhow we spent Saturday in downtown Tucson on 4th Avenue watching people getting ripped for St. PATRICK'S Day. I couldn't quite figure out why so many guys were wearing dresses that day.....









Sunday morning started with another car show which was also on 4th Avenue.....





Then it was off to the airport to pick up a friend. I'll have a travel buddy with me once again. Sometimes that's a good thing.....and sometimes, well.....

I mentioned that I just purchased the new Samsung Galaxy S9+ so I'm trying to play with the dual lenses and see what I can do. Unfortunately I have to resize all my photos to lowest resolution to post here. A few samples from an evening walk near downtown Tucson.....

 

[YukonMontanaTannerTrapper]

Next on the agenda was addressing the issues with the Jeep. I had hoped that returning to Yuma and giving my Baja mechanic 8 days to repair it would be adequate. It wasn't.....so I dropped it off at a shop in Tucson to see what the heck was going on. To make a long story short, the $1,500 rear axle that he installed was no good. And if that wasn't bad enough, it turned out that he used the wrong set of gears as the front axle are 3:55 and he used 4:11 gears for the rear axle. Fortunately I didn't put it into 4 wheel drive.....





So now we had a few more days to kill around Tucson.....we headed for Coronado National Forest, just to the east of Tucson. After maybe a 20 mile drive we found ourselves a great spot with killer views overlooking the city of Tucson.....




The evening was spent outside watching the sunset over the Tucson valley.....









I tried to get some pictures of Tucson all lit up during the night with the moon shining above but no luck there. Really loving it up here.....